4. Biological Foundation of Development Flashcards
What is the gist of behavioural genetics?
Environments influence how genes are expressed, but genes can also help shape the environments to which people are exposed.
What does behavioural genetics aim to find out?
Aims to quantify the ways in which genes and environment interact to determine how human behavioural traits and individual differences are formed
What is range of reaction?
the notion that the human being’s genetic makeup establishes a range of possible developmental outcomes. Environmental forces determine how the person actually develops within the range of outcomes
What is canalisation?
the genetic restriction of a phenotype to a small number of developmental outcomes, permitting environmental influences to play only a small role in these outcomes
What is required of environmental forces if reaction range of a trait is very narrow?
more intense or specific environmental forces are required to alter the course of development
What does Gilbert Gottlieb argue against the genetic-maturational perspective?
Argues that genes play a less determinative role in shaping development. Suggests that individual development is organized into multiple levels, all of which influence one another (Influence is bidirectional)
What multiple levels influence development according to Gilbert Gottlieb?
Genetic activity
Neural activity
Behaviour
Environment (physical, social, cultural)
Explain the concept of ‘critical period’ with regard to PKU.
Interaction between genotype and environment, there is a window of opportunity. Special PKU diet must begin immediately after birth until the nervous system matures. Allows child to develop intellectual abilities close to normal. Shows importance of timing of environmental influences.
What are the 3 types of genetic-environmental interaction?
- passive
- evocative
- active
Describe passive genetic-environmental interaction.
Parents with certain genetic predispositions may create a home environment that suits those predispositions, and that may also suit and encourage the inherited predispositions of their children.
Describe evocative genetic-environmental interaction.
Genes can influence the environment through people’s inherited tendencies to evoke certain responses from others in their social environments.
Environmental altered by genetic expression has reciprocal effects on genetic makeup
Describe active genetic-environment interaction.
People’s genetic makeup make encourage them to actively seek out experiences compatible with their inherited tendencies
Niche picking
Seeking out or creating environments compatible with one’s genetically based predispositions. Importance of niche picking increases from childhood to adolescence and adulthood, as people gain more freedom to choose activities and companions.
What are heritability factors?
percentage estimates of the contribution that heredity makes to a particular ability or type of behaviour.
Briefly describe adoption studies.
Compare characteristics of adopted children with both adoptive and biological parents. May investigate similarities and differences between biological siblings and adopted children who live in the same home.
Briefly describe twin studies.
Compare similarities between identical (monozygotic) and fraternal (dizygotic) twins raised together in the same home If identical twins show more resemblance than fraternal twins on a trait, suggest that the trait is strongly influenced by genes.
